JP2009098446A - Information providing system, information providing device, information providing method, terminal unit, and display method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a user with a state where, for example, people incidentally gather, as information. <P>SOLUTION: A server detects and controls the gathering degree of people in each location (site). Then, the server discriminates a location where the number of people currently in the location is equal to or larger than the prescribed number of people or a location where the amount of change in the number of people is equal to larger than a prescribed reference amount of change, and provides a terminal unit with the information on the location, as gathering information. The terminal unit performs display based on the gathering information. For example, on a map image, in the location where people gather, the display that indicates gathering of the people is displayed. Thus, the user of the terminal unit recognizes that a certain event takes place in the site. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an information providing system, an information providing device, an information providing method, a terminal device, and a display method, and more particularly, to a technology that can provide a gathering situation of people as information.

JP 2007-11391 A

Patent Document 1 discloses a map creation system that extracts user's subjective information and maps it to a map.
This is to collect heterogeneous electronic information caused by user behavior as behavior information collectively, collect and store it together with location information, and extract the actor's subjective information about the place from it, and use it By mapping to the objective map of, an unconventional map consisting of subjective information of people acting in the real world and rich in subjectivity and information is created.

By the way, along with technological progress such as development of communication infrastructure, development of sensor networks, weight reduction and increase of storage devices, user actions and Providing useful information and advertisements according to the position and situation, or a system for recommending content so as to suit the user's taste is becoming feasible.
Here, the occurrence or possibility of such an event when it is difficult for the general public to know in advance, such as an accidental event or an event with no (or few) notifications such as advertisements. Can be useful information.
For example, if people are gathering in a certain place more than usual, it can be estimated that some interesting or interesting event has occurred in that place.
Therefore, the present invention focuses on the fact that people are gathering, and an object thereof is to provide such a situation to the user as information.

The information providing system of the present invention is a system having a terminal device and an information providing device capable of communicating with the terminal device.
The information providing apparatus of the present invention constituting the information providing system includes a communication means for communicating with the terminal device, a number information management means for managing current number information at each position, and the number information management. Based on the number of people information managed by the means, the position for performing the notice display is determined, the set information generating means for generating the set information including the position information for the notice display, and the set information generating means Transmission control means for transmitting aggregate information to the terminal device by the communication means.
Further, the terminal device of the present invention constituting this information providing system executes a display of a map image on a communication unit that communicates with the information providing device and an integral or separate display unit, and also provides the information providing Control means for executing display on the map image based on the collective information transmitted from the apparatus and received by the communication means.

In the information providing apparatus of the present invention described above, the communication unit receives current situation information including at least the current position information of the terminal device, which is transmitted from an external terminal device, and the number information management unit includes: The current number information at each position is managed using the received current status information.
The current status information also includes identification information on the terminal device side, and the number information management means manages information on persons at each position based on the identification information.
Further, the current status information further includes biological information or exercise information of the person who possesses the terminal device, and the number information management means includes the identification information and the biological information as information on the person at each position. Information or exercise information is managed.
The number information management means manages attribute registration information of a person who uses the terminal device in association with the identification information.
Further, the number information management means manages the staying time at the current position in correspondence with the identification information as information on a person at each position.

Further, the collective information generation means in the information providing device determines whether or not the current number of persons at each position is greater than or equal to a predetermined number of persons based on the number of persons information managed by the number of persons information management means, and displays a notification display. Determine the position to do.
Further, when determining whether or not the current number of people at each position is greater than or equal to the predetermined number, the position of the predetermined number of persons is determined for each position as a different value, and the position for displaying the notification is determined.
Further, the set information generation means determines whether or not the current number of people at each position is equal to or greater than a predetermined number as each position within a specific area range, and determines a position for displaying the notification.
Further, the set information generation means determines the current number of persons corresponding to a predetermined extraction condition as the current number of persons at each position, determines whether the determined current number is equal to or greater than a predetermined number of persons, Decide where to display the notification. The extraction condition is a condition including at least one of person attribute registration information, biological information, exercise information, and staying time.
The collective information generating means determines a position where the current number of persons is a predetermined number or more and a position where the notification display is performed according to the distribution status of the attribute information of existing persons.

Further, the collective information generation means in the information providing device determines whether or not the number of people change at each position is greater than or equal to a predetermined reference change based on the number of people information managed by the number of people information management means. , Determine the position to display the notification.
Further, when determining whether or not the amount of change in the number of persons at each position is greater than or equal to the reference change amount, the collective information generation means determines the value of the reference change amount as a different value for each position, and notifies Determine the display position.
Further, the set information generation means determines, as each position within a specific area range, whether or not the number of people change at each position is equal to or larger than a reference change amount, and determines a position where notification display is performed.
Further, the set information generation means determines the current number of persons corresponding to a predetermined extraction condition at each position, and determines whether or not the determined change in the number of persons is equal to or greater than a reference change. To determine the position for the notification display. The extraction condition is a condition including at least one of person attribute registration information, biological information, exercise information, and staying time.
Further, the set information generation means determines a position where the notification display is performed according to the distribution state of the attribute information of the existing person and the position where the change amount of the number of persons is equal to or greater than the reference change amount.

The set information generation means generates set information including information on the position determined to be notified and information on the current number of persons or the amount of change in the number of persons at the position.
Further, the set information generation means generates set information including information on a position determined to be notified and information on an extraction condition at the time of determining the position.
Further, the set information generation means generates set information including information on the position determined to be notified and additional information on the determined position.

The transmission control means causes the communication means to transmit the set information generated by the set information generation means to the terminal apparatus in response to receiving request information from an external terminal apparatus.
Alternatively, the transmission control unit causes the communication unit to transmit the set information generated by the set information generation unit to the terminal device at a transmission timing corresponding to a change in the number of people situation.

  The information providing method according to the present invention includes a step of managing current number information at each position, a position on which notification display is determined based on the managed number information, and a set including position information on which notification display is performed A step of generating information, and a step of transmitting the generated set information to an external terminal device.

In the terminal device of the present invention described above, the received collective information includes position information for performing notification display, and information on the current number of persons or the amount of change in the number of persons at the position. As a display based on the above, a display in a different mode is executed at the position on the map image corresponding to the position information according to the current number of persons or the amount of change in the number of persons.
Further, the set information includes position information for performing notification display and information on extraction conditions for determining the position. The control means displays the position information as a display based on the set information. In a corresponding position on the map image, display in a different mode is executed according to the extraction condition.
Further, the set information includes position information for performing notification display and additional information about the position, and the control means displays a map image corresponding to the position information as a display based on the set information. The display based on the additional information is executed at the position.

  The display method of the present invention is a display method in a terminal device capable of communicating with an external information providing apparatus, and the step of receiving collective information including position information for performing notice display from the information providing apparatus, and a unitary or separate The display unit includes a step of executing display of the map image and executing display based on the received set information on the map image.

  In the present invention, the information providing apparatus detects and manages the degree of gathering of people at each position (location). Then, a position (location) where the number of people currently present is equal to or greater than a predetermined number or the amount of change in the number of persons is equal to or greater than a predetermined reference change is determined, and information on the position is provided to the terminal device as collective information. The terminal device performs display based on the collective information. For example, a display indicating that people are gathering is performed at a position where people are gathering on the map image. As a result, the user of the terminal device can know that an event has occurred at that location.

According to the present invention, a user of a terminal device can usually know events or events that cannot be known unless he / she is in the specific place as information on the location where people gather. This makes it possible to provide very useful information to the user.
Also, it is not just a gathering of people, but by displaying what people are gathering and how many people are gathering, the user is interested in what is happening in that place. It is also suitable for determining whether or not there is a certain event, and appropriate information can be provided to the user.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below. The description will be given in the following order.
[1. System configuration]
[2. Terminal device configuration]
[3. Server device configuration]
[4. Transmission of current status information from the terminal device to the server device]
[5. Identification of the number of people in server equipment]
[6. Operation example I for displaying group information]
[7. Example of Operation for Collective Information Display II]
[8. Example of Operation for Collective Information Display III]
[9. Example of filtering by extraction conditions]
[10. Display example]
[11. Effects and modifications of the embodiment]

[1. System configuration]

A system configuration example of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
The system of this example is configured such that the terminal devices 1, 1 </ b> A, 1 </ b> B and the server device 70 (information providing device) can communicate via the network 60.

The terminal devices 1, 1 </ b> A, and 1 </ b> B are devices that are possessed by the user, for example, as portable devices.
In this system, it is assumed that a large number of users each have, for example, the terminal device 1. Each terminal device 1 transmits the current position information of the user to the server device 70, so that the server device 70 manages the current positions of a large number of users. Then, “a place where people gather” is determined.
When the server device 70 transmits information on “location where people are gathering” to the terminal device 1 as aggregate information, the terminal device 1 performs a notification display based on the aggregate information. For example, on the map image display, a display showing a place where people gather is performed.
With such an operation, the user of the terminal device 1 can know a place where people are gathering.

In order to realize such a system operation, the terminal device 1 transmits at least current position information as current status information to the server device 70, for example, periodically. In some cases, biological information and exercise information are transmitted together with the position information.
Further, the terminal device 1 can receive the set information from the server device 70 and display the set information based on the set information to notify the user of the set information. The collective information is basically information indicating that a large number of people are gathered at a certain position (location). In the terminal device 1, a large number of people are displayed on the map image based on the collective information. A display showing the gathering location is performed.

As an embodiment, basically, a system including the terminal device 1 and the server device 70 may be assumed. However, as a terminal on the system, the terminal device 1A used simply for managing the gathering status by the server device 70. In addition, since the device as the terminal device 1B that does not contribute to the management of the gathering status but can receive the information providing service is also conceivable, the terminal devices 1A and 1B are also shown.
The terminal device 1A performs an operation of transmitting the current status information including the current position information to the server device 70. However, the terminal device 1A is a device having no function of receiving the collective information from the server device 70 and performing display based on the collective information.
The terminal device 1 </ b> B has a function of receiving collective information from the server device 70 and performing display based on the collective information, but in particular is a device that does not transmit current status information to the server device 70.
A configuration example of each of the terminal devices 1, 1A, 1B will be described later.

The terminal devices 1, 1 </ b> A, and 1 </ b> B may be devices that the user carries as devices having shapes and sizes suitable for carrying such as mobile phones, PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants), and small personal computers. Further, as the built-in function of the cellular phone, PDA, or personal computer, the function as the terminal device 1, 1A, 1B may be provided.
Further, for example, a spectacle type or a headset type may be worn by the user on the head, or a wrist watch type or a pendant type may be worn by the user.

The terminal device 1A may be configured as a card-like device, an IC tag, or the like as a smaller device.
Further, the terminal device 1B is not necessarily a portable device, but may be a device that a user places at home or the like, for example, a device such as a desktop personal computer, or a desktop personal computer. The terminal device 1B may be realized as a built-in function.

The server device 70 functions as an information providing device that provides aggregate information to the terminal devices 1 and 1B.
The server device 70 manages the current position information transmitted from the terminal devices 1 and 1A, determines how many people are gathered at each position, and manages the gathering status of people at each position. . Also, based on the management of the set status, set information is generated and transmitted to the terminal devices 1 and 1B.

Various networks 60 are conceivable, such as the Internet, a mobile phone communication network, a PHS communication network, an ad hoc network, and a LAN.

[2. Terminal device configuration]

A configuration example of the terminal devices 1, 1A, 1B will be described.
First, FIG. 2 shows a configuration example of the terminal device 1.
The terminal device 1 includes a system controller 10, a biological sensor unit 11, a motion sensor unit 12, a position detection unit 13, a display unit 14, a date / time counting unit 15, an operation unit 16, a storage unit 17, and a communication unit 18.

The system controller 10 includes, for example, a microcomputer including a central processing unit (CPU), a read only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a nonvolatile memory unit, and an interface unit, and controls the entire terminal device 1. The control unit
The system controller 10 controls each unit in the terminal device 1 based on an internal operation program, and executes a necessary communication operation, a display operation based on collective information, and the like.

The biometric sensor unit 11 detects the biometric information of the user. The biological information includes pulse, heartbeat, electrocardiogram signal, myoelectricity, respiration (for example, respiration rate, depth, ventilation volume, etc.), sweating, GSR (skin electrical response), blood pressure, blood oxygen saturation concentration (SpO _2). ), Skin surface temperature, brain waves (eg, α wave, β wave, θ wave, δ wave information), blood flow changes (blood flow changes such as cerebral blood flow and peripheral blood flow by near infrared spectroscopy), body temperature, eye State (pupil state, eye movement, blinking, etc.).
For example, in order to detect GSR (electric skin reaction), body temperature, skin surface temperature, electrocardiogram reaction, myocardial heartbeat, pulse, blood flow, blood pressure, brain wave, sweating, body temperature, etc., a sensor that contacts the subject's skin is used. It is possible to use it. For the EEG, a sensor that is worn in contact with the head is used.
Moreover, as a sensor which detects a user's eye state, it can form with the imaging part made to image a user's eye part, for example. In this case, by performing image analysis on the image of the user's eye imaged by the image capturing unit, it is possible to detect the line-of-sight direction, the focal length, the degree of opening of the pupil, the fundus pattern, the opening / closing of the eyelid, and the like. Alternatively, it may be formed by a light emitting unit that irradiates light to a user's eye and a light receiving unit that receives reflected light from the eye. For example, it is possible to detect the thickness of the user's crystalline lens from the received light signal.
The biological sensor unit 11 outputs detection result information from these required sensors to the system controller 10.

The motion sensor unit 12 detects user motion information. The exercise information is information indicating each state of the user's stationary / walking / running, information indicating a movement state (swaying, jumping, walking / running rhythm, center of gravity, etc.), or the user's body elements such as the head and arms. , Information indicating movement of feet, hands, fingers and the like.
Such motion information can be detected by using an acceleration sensor, a gyro (angular velocity sensor), a vibration sensor, or the like. That is, by providing an acceleration sensor and a gyro, for example, a movement of the whole body, a movement of the head, a movement of the neck, a movement of the arm part, and a movement of the leg part can be detected as a signal corresponding to the movement of the user. Of course, when detecting the movement of the arm, the movement of the leg, etc., an acceleration sensor or a gyro may be attached to the user's arm or leg.
The biological sensor unit 11 outputs detection result information obtained by these acceleration sensors and the like to the system controller 10.

The position detector 13 is, for example, a GPS receiver. The GPS receiver receives radio waves from a GPS (Global Positioning System) satellite, and outputs latitude / longitude information as the current position to the system controller 10.
Note that the position detection unit 12 may use a location information service provided by WiFi (Wireless Fidelity) or a mobile phone company.
The date / time counting unit 15 always performs a date / time counting operation to count year / month / day / hour / minute / second.

The operation unit 16 is provided as an operator such as a key or a dial for a user using the terminal device 1 to perform various operations. Further, a touch panel may be provided on the display unit 14 so that the touch unit can be operated as the operation unit 16.
For example, power on / off operations, display-related operations (for example, display mode selection and display adjustment operations), various setting operations, and the like are possible.
The system controller 10 performs necessary control processing based on operation information from the operation unit 16.
In addition, since the terminal device 1 of this example is provided with the biometric sensor unit 11 and the motion sensor unit 12, the system controller 10 detects the conscious behavior of the user from the biometric information / motion information detected by these. May be determined as operation input information.
For example, it is possible to detect that the user taps the terminal device 1 with an acceleration sensor, a vibration sensor, or the like of the motion sensor unit 12, and the system controller 10 recognizes this as an operation of the user.
Further, it may be detected by an acceleration sensor or angular velocity sensor that the user turns his head or shakes his / her head, and the system controller 10 recognizes this as an operation of the user.
It is also conceivable that the movement of the user's eyes is detected by the biometric sensor unit 11 and, for example, the movement of the eyes (change in the line of sight or blinking) as the user's conscious behavior is used as the operation input.

  The communication unit 18 transmits / receives data to / from an external device. The communication unit 18 is connected to the network by wire or wireless, and communicates with the server device 70 via the network 60 shown in FIG.

The storage unit 17 records (stores) various data and reproduces (reads) the recorded data based on the control of the system controller 10.
The storage unit 17 may be configured by a solid-state memory such as a RAM or a flash memory, or may be configured by an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), for example.
Further, instead of a built-in recording medium, a portable recording medium, for example, a recording / reproducing drive corresponding to a recording medium such as a memory card incorporating a solid-state memory, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, or a hologram memory may be used.
Of course, both a built-in type memory such as a solid-state memory and an HDD, and a recording / reproducing drive for a portable recording medium may be mounted.
In the case of this example, the storage unit 17 is particularly provided with storage areas as a communication data storage unit 17a, a detection information storage unit 17b, and a map database 17c.

The communication data storage unit 17 a is used for buffering and storing transmission / reception data in the communication unit 18.
The detection information storage unit 17 b stores biological information detected by the biological sensor unit 11, exercise information detected by the motion sensor unit 12, and position information detected by the position detection unit 13. For example, based on the control of the system controller 10, these pieces of information are stored together with the date and time information counted by the date and time counting unit 15 at regular intervals, for example. That is, the biometric information / exercise information / position information of the user is recorded in the detection information storage unit 17b, and current status information described later is generated based on the recorded information.
The map database 17c stores a map image and other necessary information for displaying a map.

The display unit 14 includes, for example, a display panel unit such as a liquid crystal panel or an organic EL panel, and a display driving unit that drives the display panel unit. The display drive unit includes a pixel drive circuit for displaying the supplied image data on the display panel unit. The pixel drive circuit applies a drive signal based on the video signal to each pixel arranged in a matrix in the display panel unit at a predetermined horizontal / vertical drive timing, and causes display to be performed.
The display unit 14 causes the display panel unit to execute a predetermined display based on the control of the system controller 10. Particularly in this example, the system controller 10 uses the map image data stored in the map database 17c to cause the display unit 14 to display a map, and further, on the map image, collective information received from the server device 70. Display based on.

Such a terminal device 1 is preferably configured as a small and lightweight device so that the user can wear or carry it as described above. Here, in order to appropriately perform detection by the biosensor unit 11 and the motion sensor unit 12 in particular, depending on the content of the biometric information to be detected, for example, a wristwatch type, a spectacle type, a headset type, a hat type, It is in the form of a helmet type, a glove type, or a built-in clothes, and in particular, a part (biological sensor unit 11) can contact an appropriate body part such as a skin or a head of a person to be detected according to detection contents. Such a form can be considered.
However, since at least the biological sensor unit 11 (the motion sensor unit 12 depending on the content of the motion information to be detected) may be in close contact with the user's body, the terminal device 1 is formed of two units as shown in FIG. May be.

FIG. 3 shows an example in which the terminal device 1 is composed of separate units, that is, a detection device unit 2 and a display device unit 3.
The detection device unit 2 includes a biological sensor unit 11, a motion sensor unit 12, and a detection information transmission unit 19.
In addition to the system controller 10, the position detection unit 13, the display unit 14, the date and time counting unit 15, the operation unit 16, the storage unit 17, and the communication unit 18, the display device unit 3 includes a detection information reception unit 20.
The detection information receiving unit 20 and the detection information transmitting unit 19 communicate with each other by, for example, wireless communication or wired communication. In the case of wireless communication, for example, a short-range wireless communication method such as Bluetooth may be employed, or an optical communication method in which data communication is performed by optical pulse modulation using visible light or invisible light may be used. Of course, a wireless communication method or network communication corresponding to a longer distance may be used.
In the case of FIG. 3, the biological information detected by the biological sensor unit 11 and the movement information detected by the movement sensor unit 12 are transmitted from the detection information transmission unit 19 and received by the detection information reception unit 20.
The system controller 10 performs display control of the character image based on the biological information and exercise information received by the detection information receiving unit 20.

In the case of the configuration of FIG. 3, only the detection device unit 2 needs to be able to contact a required part such as the user's skin or head, so that it is possible to reduce the user's mounting burden. In particular, since the detection device unit 2 has a simple configuration including the biological sensor unit 11, the motion sensor unit 12, and the detection information transmission unit 19, it can be easily reduced in size and weight, and can be realized as a device that can be attached to a required part of the body. Becomes easy.
The display device unit 3 may be a dedicated small device owned by the user. For example, a portable device such as a mobile phone or a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) has a function as the display device unit 3. It can be realized as an addition.

FIG. 4 shows a configuration example of the terminal device 1A described above.
The terminal device 1A is a device that transmits current status information to the server device 70. For this reason, the system controller 10, the biological sensor unit 11, the motion sensor unit 12, the position detection unit 13, the date and time counting unit 15, The storage unit 17 and the communication unit 18 may be included.
In the memory | storage part 17, the detection information storage part 17b which memorize | stores the positional information, biological information, and exercise | movement information used as the content of present situation information should just be provided.

FIG. 5 shows a configuration example of the terminal device 1B described above.
The terminal device 1B is a device that receives the collective information transmitted from the server device 70 and performs display based on the collective information. For this reason, the terminal device 1B should just have the system controller 10, the position detection part 13, the display part 14, the operation part 16, the memory | storage part 17, and the communication part 18. FIG.
The storage unit 17 may be provided with a communication data storage unit 17a for storing the received set information and a map database 17c for map display.
The position detection by the position detection unit 13 is performed, for example, in order to display the current self position on the map image when displaying the map image.

Examples of the configurations of the terminal devices 1, 1 </ b> A, and 1 </ b> B are shown in FIGS. 2, 3, 4, and 5.
That is, it may be considered that a necessary part is provided according to at least various operation examples described later, the structure of data to be communicated, and the like, and various deletions and additions of the configurations illustrated in the respective drawings can be considered.
For example, a configuration without the living body sensor 11 and the motion sensor 12 can be considered as the terminal devices 1 and 1A.
Moreover, the map database 71c is not necessarily required as the terminal devices 1 and 1B. The map database 17c is used to display a map on the display unit 14. For example, if the map drawing data is downloaded from the server device 70 at the time of map display, the map database 17c need not be provided. The map image can be displayed.

[3. Server device configuration]

Next, FIG. 6 shows a configuration example of the server device 70.
As described above, the server device 70 captures the current status information transmitted from the terminal device 1 (or 1A: omitted hereinafter) by communication via the network 60, for example, and grasps the set status of each position. This is a device that generates collective information indicating a place where people are gathering and transmits the collective information to the terminal device 1 (or 1B: hereinafter omitted).
The server device 70 includes a server control unit 72, a network storage unit 71, a communication unit 73, a database management unit 74, a number management database 75, a registered user database 76, a map database 77, and a location management database 78.

The server control unit 72 performs necessary operation control as the server device 70. In particular, control of network communication operation, processing control when current status information is transmitted from the terminal device 1, control regarding transmission of aggregate information to the terminal device 1, and the like are performed.
The network storage unit 71 is realized by, for example, an HDD or the like, and is used, for example, to temporarily store transmission / reception data by communication with the terminal device 1 via the network 60 or to store various necessary data.
The communication unit 73 performs data communication with the terminal device 1 via the network 60.

  The database management unit 74 manages each of the number management database 75, the registered user database 76, the map database 77, and the position management database 78. That is, update processing, search processing, reading processing, etc. are performed for each database.

The number management database 75 is a database for managing the current number of people at each position.
The number management database 75 has a structure as shown in FIG. That is, in correspondence with each position (P1, P2, P3...) On the map, the number of people currently present at that position is managed while being constantly updated. As the user ID, the identification information of the current person is updated and registered.
The positions P1, P2, P3... Serving as management units may be one position expressed by latitude and longitude, or may be a position corresponding to a place name, a district name, or the like. Further, the position may be set by dividing the area on the map. It is only necessary to set a unit of “place” that can be discriminated by position information detected on the terminal device 1 side.
The user ID is identification information set uniquely for the user of the terminal device 1, and the user ID may be a device ID assigned to the terminal device 1 individually.

  As will be described later, at least a user ID and current position information are transmitted as the current status information from the terminal device 1 or 1A. On the server device 70 side, the number of people management database 75 is updated every time the current status information is received. For example, if the user ID is “UID1” as the received current situation information and the position information is a position corresponding to the position P1, the user ID “UID1” is registered for the position P1 in the number management database 75. The current number of people can be managed as the number of registered user IDs.

FIG. 7B shows another example of the structure of the number management database 75. For example, the current number of people and the user ID are managed in correspondence with the positions (P1, P2, P3...) As in FIG. 7A, but further, the fluctuation of the number of people per unit time x minutes can be managed. In addition, the number of people before x minutes, the number of people before 2x minutes, the number of people before 3x minutes are registered as the number of people progress information.
Thus, by leaving the past number of people as registration information to some extent, the server device 70 can grasp the change in the number of people at each position.
For example, in the case of the example in FIG. 7B, a situation where the number of people is gradually increasing can be confirmed at the position P1, and a situation where the number of people is decreasing can be confirmed at the position P3.

The registered user database 76 is a database that manages information of users registered in the information providing service by the system of this example.
For example, FIG. 8 shows a structural example of the registered user database 76.
Here, in the registered user database 76, for example, attribute registration information notified by the user in advance or latest update information indicating the latest situation is registered.

In the registered user database 76, attribute registration information and latest update information are registered corresponding to each user identified by the user ID.
First, attribute registration information is information notified in advance by the user in order to enjoy the service provided by the system of this example. For example, when the service is received, the attribute registration information is transmitted from the terminal device 1 to be registered in the registered user database 76.
As the contents of the attribute registration information, age, sex, hobby preference information UPD, and the like are assumed. The hobby preference information UPD includes, for example, contents such as music, sports, gourmet, shopping, etc. as genres such as hobbies, and further subdivided contents (for example, music genres such as rock and classical music). Conceivable.

The latest update information corresponding to the user ID is information notified as current status information transmitted from the terminal device 1. That is, it is information that is updated every time current status information is transmitted, and includes, for example, date and time TM, current position, biological information BD, exercise information PD, and stay time STM.
An example of the contents of the current status information transmitted from the terminal device 1 will be described later with reference to FIG. 11, but includes at least a user ID, date / time information, and position information. For this reason, when the current status information is transmitted, at least the date and time TM and the contents of the current position are updated in the registered user database 76. For example, when the current status information of user ID = UID1 is transmitted from a certain terminal device 1, the date and position are updated as registration information of user ID = UID1 in this registered user database 76.
As the position information, for example, the same position information as the positions P1, P2,... Shown in the number management database 75 in FIG. For example, when the position information (latitude / longitude) transmitted in the current status information corresponds to the position P3 in the number management database 75, “P3” is registered as the position information of the latest update information in the registered user database 76. .
Further, when the current situation information includes biological information or exercise information, the contents as the biological information BD and exercise information PD are also updated in the registered user database 76.
The latest update information including the date / time TM, the position, the biological information BD, and the exercise information PD is used for managing the latest status of each user.

The stay time STM is information indicating the time during which the user stays at the current location. For example, as shown in the figure, when the current position of the user with the user ID = UID1 is the position P3, the time during which the user stays at the position P3 is indicated as the stay time STM.
For example, when the current status information is received and the latest update information is updated, it is checked whether there is a change in the position information. If there is no change, the date and time stored so far and the current status By adding the difference time with the date and time indicated by the information to the value of the stay time STM so far, the stay time at the same position up to now can be calculated. Of course, when the position indicated by the current status information is different from the position stored so far, the stay time STM may be reset to zero.

  With the registered user database 76 as shown in FIG. 8, in the server device 70, as attributes (age, gender, hobby preference) for the user of each terminal device 1 and the latest situation, currently (at a time close to the present), It is possible to manage and grasp where you are, what kind of biological and exercise conditions you have, and how long you are staying at the current location.

  The map database 77 in the configuration of FIG. 6 stores map information based on latitude and longitude. For example, it is referred to in the process of associating the latitude / longitude with the positions P1, P2,... Used in the number management database 75 or the registered user database 76, or in the creation of the position management database 78 described below. Referenced.

The location management database 78 registers location attributes ZD, average set level, set necessity level, and location corresponding service data PSD as information about each of the locations P1, P2,... Used in the number management database 75 and the registered user database 76. Is done.
The position attribute ZD is a content indicating an attribute for each position. For example, the location name, the area name, the road name, the name of a building / facility, or the type of the position, the type of the building, the facility, the location, or the like. As the type here, for example, a type such as a store, a stadium, a park, a field, or a station is assumed.

The average collective level is information indicating, in n levels, information indicating how many people gather at that position.
For example, the average number of people varies depending on whether the area is large or small in population or the residential area / business district. For example, there are always a large number of people at a location Px in Shinjuku, Tokyo, and the downtown area of Shibuya, but the average number of people at the location Py in the downtown area of a local city is not so large. In the case of a rural area, for example, there is a situation where there are almost no people even at a position Pz in front of a station.
This system provides a service for presenting a place where people are gathering to the user of the terminal device 1, and the user places “a place where people gather” as “a place where something interesting happens”. It is necessary to extract a place where more people gather than usual. For example, at a certain position Px in Shibuya Ward, if there are about 100 people on average every day, even if a set of 100 people is detected, it is estimated that it is “a place where something interesting happened” Hard to do. In such a place, it is appropriate to raise the standard for judging “a place where something interesting is happening” to a larger number of people.
On the other hand, since there are usually few people at the location Pz gathering venue in front of the rural station, if about 10 people gather, it can be estimated that some event has occurred.
In this way, when judging whether there are more people gathering than usual, it is appropriate to judge the place where people are gathering based on the average number of people in normal times. .
Therefore, the position management database sets and manages the level of the number of normal people as an average set level, and determines whether or not people are gathered according to the level.

The gathering necessity level is registered by setting a level as to whether or not it is a place where people often gather.
The system of this example focuses on guiding places where accidental events are likely to occur rather than guiding pre-planned and advertised events, for example.
For example, if a competition is being held at a sports stadium, or if it is being held at a live house, concert venue, theater, etc., it can be said that there are inevitably people gathering there. In other words, for example, a stadium, a live house, etc. have a high necessity of gathering people.
On the other hand, it is not a facility where people gather, but there are places where people are particularly unlikely to gather, such as on certain streets, street corners, parks, etc. It can be estimated that an accidental event or an unadvertised event such as a guerrilla live has occurred.
Therefore, for each of the positions P1, P2,..., The necessity of gathering people is set and registered in m levels. When it is detected that a person is gathering at a certain position by referring to this level of necessity of collection, it can be used to determine whether the person is gathering or it is incidental. it can.

  The position corresponding service data PSD is additional information corresponding to each position. For example, in the case of a location Px corresponding to a business facility such as a store, information such as store advertisements, business guidance, images, homepage addresses, address links, discount information, etc. is registered as location-corresponding service data PSD for the location Px. The Further, data such as a photographic image or a comment as post data from the user regarding the position may be registered as the position corresponding service data PSD.

As described above, the location management database 78 registers information about each location of the locations P1, P2,... So that it can be referred to when generating collective information to be notified to the user of the terminal device 1.

[4. Transmission of current status information from the terminal device to the server device]

An operation example as an information providing system constituted by the terminal device 1 (1A, 1B) and the server device 70 will be described.
First, the communication operation of the current status information performed for managing the number of people at each position in the server device 70 will be described here.

As described above, the terminal device 1 or the terminal device 1A possessed by the user transmits the current status information to the server device 70. ,
For example, FIG. 10 shows processing when the terminal device 1 (or 1A) automatically transmits the current status information to the server device 70 at regular timing.
The system controller 10 of the terminal device 1 (or 1A) periodically executes the processing shown on the left side of FIG. 10, and in response to this, the server control unit 72 of the server device 70 performs the processing shown on the right side of FIG. .

  First, the system controller 10 of the terminal device 1 monitors the transmission timing in step F101. For example, every 30 seconds, 1 minute, or several minutes is set as the transmission timing, and the system controller 10 determines whether or not the transmission timing has been reached based on the time count.

When the transmission timing is reached, the system controller 10 advances the process to step F102 to generate current status information.
Note that, in the terminal device 1, the system controller 10 always uses the detected information as the detected information storage unit 17 b of the storage unit 17 as the biological information detected by the biological sensor unit 11 or the detected value as the motion information detected by the motion sensor unit 12. The operation to memorize is executed. The position information (for example, latitude / longitude) detected by the position detection unit 13 is also stored in the detection information storage unit 17b.
Alternatively, when the transmission timing is reached and the process proceeds to step F102, the system controller 10 causes the detection information storage unit 17b to store the detection values detected by the biological sensor unit 11, the motion sensor unit 12, and the position detection unit 13. You may do it.

  In any case, when the process proceeds to step F102 at the transmission timing, the system controller 10 generates current status information using the latest detection information stored in the detection information storage unit 17b.

An example of the contents as the current status information to be generated is shown in FIG.
FIG. 11A is an example in which the current situation information is configured by a current situation information header, a user ID, date / time information, and position information.
FIG. 11B is an example in which the current situation information is configured by a current situation information header, a user ID, date / time information, position information, biological information, and exercise information.
FIG. 11C illustrates an example in which the current situation information is configured by a current situation information header, a user ID, date / time information, position information, and biological information.
FIG. 11D is an example in which the current situation information is configured by a current situation information header, a user ID, date information, position information, and exercise information.
Although other examples of the contents of the current situation information are conceivable, what information is included as the contents of the current situation information depends on the system operation mode and the configuration of the terminal device 1.

The current status information header includes basic matters as current status information to be transmitted, such as an identification code indicating current status information, a synchronization signal, a data size, and an information encoding method.
The user ID is user identification information given to each user. This may be identification information uniquely assigned to the terminal device 1.
The date / time information is information on the current year / month / day / hour / minute / second. The system controller 10 adds the value of the current date and time counted by the date and time counting unit 15 to the current status information.
The position information is position information (latitude / longitude) detected by the position detection unit 13 and taken into the detection information storage unit 17b.

  The current status information includes at least information as shown in FIG. 11A. However, when the biometric sensor unit 11 and the motion sensor unit 12 are provided as shown in FIGS. As in (b), (c), and (d), biological information and exercise information can be included in the current situation information.

Here, as described above, the biological information may be detected values such as a heart rate, a pulse, an electroencephalogram, a blood pressure, and an electrical skin reaction as described above. However, the user's psychological information estimated from these detected biological information values. It may be included.
For example, estimating user's emotions (fun, funny, happy, sad, horrible, calm, nostalgic, emotion, startle, excitement, tension, etc.) based on fluctuations in the values of biological information associated with tension, excitement, comfort, etc. can do. For example, detection values of heart rate, pulse, electroencephalogram, blood pressure, skin electrical response, and the like also vary due to psychological changes. For example, it can be determined from the heart rate and respiratory information whether or not the user is in a throbbing situation.
Further, the user's situation (settled, impatient, etc.) can also be determined by the state of the pupil and the movement of the line of sight by the visual sensor.
Furthermore, you may use the user's body motion detected by the motion sensor part 12 for determination of a user condition. For example, when the pulse or the like becomes early, it may be caused by tension or excitement, or it may be caused by exercise such as a user running. For such determination, information such as an acceleration sensor can be referred to.
The system controller 10 can include the psychological information determined as described above in the current situation information as one of the biological information.

In addition, a certain amount of time is required to estimate the psychological state, and an accurate psychological state may not be estimated only by temporarily capturing the detection information of the biological sensor unit 11. That is, the value of the detection information of the biological sensor unit 11 as a signal obtained from the living body changes every moment, and it is difficult to understand what psychological state it is by just looking at the value at a certain moment. Or it may be better to change the threshold for the determination of the psychological state due to continuous emotional changes.
Therefore, it is also appropriate to make a psychological determination with reference to a continuous change in biological information / motion information from a certain past. In other words, it is also appropriate to examine the biological information stored in the detection information storage unit 17b in time series and refer to the biological information from a certain point in time (for example, several minutes before) to make a psychological determination.

After generating the current situation information as illustrated in FIG. 11 in step F102, the system controller 10 causes the communication unit 18 to transmit the current situation information to the server device 70 in step F103.
In the terminal device 1, the processes of steps F <b> 102 and F <b> 103 described above are performed at each regular transmission timing.
Note that the processing in steps F102 and F103 may be performed in response to some trigger, such as a user operation, a surrounding environment, or a change in the current position.

On the server device 70 side, the server control unit 72 performs steps F201, F202, and F203.
That is, when the current status information from a certain terminal device 1 is received by the communication unit 73, the server control unit 72 advances the processing from step F201 to F202, and receives and decodes the contents of the decoded current status information as a network storage unit. 71.
In step F203, necessary information included in the captured current situation information is transferred to the database management unit 74, and a database update is instructed.
The database management unit 74 performs an update process on the number management database 75 and the registered user database 76 as follows.

First, the number management database 75 is updated when it is received with reference to the position information and user ID in the current situation information.
An example of update processing of the number management database 75 is shown in FIG.

In step F211, the database management unit 74 determines, for example, which of the positions P1, P2,. Determine. Let the determined position be P (x).
Of course, if the positions P1, P2,... In the number management database 75 are latitude and longitude values themselves, they may be left as they are. If the ranges do not match, the position P in the database management corresponding to the latitude and longitude is determined.

  Next, in step F <b> 212, the database management unit 74 searches whether or not a user ID that matches the user ID in the received current situation information is registered in the number management database 75. As shown in FIG. 7, in the number management database 75, the person who is present is registered with the user ID for each position P1, P2,... Whether or not exists.

  If no matching user ID is found, the database management unit 74 proceeds from step F213 to F218, adds the received user ID as the user ID for the position P (x), and presents the current position P (x). Add 1 to the number of people.

If a matching user ID is found, the database management unit 74 proceeds from step F213 to F214, and the position P1, P2,... (Y).
In step F215, it is determined whether or not position P (x) = position P (y). Position P (x) = position P (y) means that there is no change from the currently registered content. That is, the user of the terminal device 1 that has transmitted the current status information received this time is at the same position as when the previous current status information was transmitted.
In this case, since the update is not necessary, the processing is finished as it is.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step F215 that the position P (x) is not equal to the position P (y), the user has moved to a position different from the previous transmission of the current status information, so the process proceeds to step F216 to update I do.
First, in step F216, the corresponding user ID registered at the position P (y) is deleted. Also, the value of the current number of people at the position P (y) is set to -1.
In step F217, the received user ID is added as the user ID for the position P (x), and the value of the current number of people at the position P (x) is incremented by one.

  Each time the current status information is received, the database management unit 74 performs the processing as described above, so that the number of people in each position P1, P2,... It will be in the state which can grasp the user who is in.

The database management unit 74 also performs an update process for the registered user database 76 based on instructions from the server control unit 72. This is shown in FIG.
First, in step F221, the database management unit 74 searches the registered user database 76 using the received user ID, and determines whether the received user ID is already registered or not registered.

If the received user ID in the current status information is a user ID already registered in the registered user database 76, the process proceeds from step F222 to F223. First, the date and time YM and position P in the latest update information registered for the user ID. (Z) Read the stay time STM.
Then, the database management unit 74 determines whether or not the read position P (z) matches the position P (x) determined in step F211 of FIG.
That is, this is also a determination as to whether or not the user is at the same position as the previous transmission of the current status information, as in step F215 in FIG.
Here, in the processes in steps F221 to F224, it is assumed that the presence / absence of user ID registration or the movement of the user's position is determined, but if the process of FIG. Since the determination has already been made in the database management unit 74, these determination processes can be omitted.

When it is determined that the user is at the same position as the previous transmission of the current status information, the process proceeds to step F225 to calculate the stay time. This may be done by adding the time difference between the date and time in the current status information received this time and the registered date and time TM to the value of the registered stay time STM. That means
Stay time STM = Stay time STM + (Date and time included in current status information-Date and time TM)
And
On the other hand, if it is determined that the user has moved to a position different from the previous transmission of the current status information, the process proceeds to step F226 to set the stay time STM = 0.

When the stay time STM is set in this way, the database management unit 74 performs an update process in step F227.
That is, in the latest update information as the slot of the corresponding user ID in the registered user database 76, the value of the date and time TM is rewritten to the date and time value in the received current status information.
The position value is defined as position P (x).
In addition, the value of the stay time STM is rewritten to the value obtained in step F225 or F226.
If the current situation information includes biological information or exercise information when received, the biological information BD and exercise information PD in the registered user database 76 are rewritten with the received contents.

  In step F222, if the user ID in the received current situation information is an unregistered user ID in the registered user database 76, the process proceeds from step F222 to F228, and a new slot for registering the user ID received this time is newly added. Provide. In step F229, the date / time TM, the position, the biological information BD, the exercise information PD, and the stay time STM as the latest update information are written in the slot. The date and time TM, the biological information BD, and the exercise information PD are written with values as the contents of the received current situation information. The position is the position P (x) described above. The stay time STM may be “0”.

For example, the database management unit 74 updates the registered user database 76 in response to the reception of the current status information by the above processing.
The database is updated in the processing of FIGS. 12 and 13 according to the instruction of the server control unit 72 in step F203 of FIG. The current status information is sequentially sent from the large number of terminal devices 1 to the server device 70 side. Whenever the current status information is received, such a database update is performed, so that the server device 70 side The situation of a large number of users can be managed.
In particular, the number of people management database 75 can manage the current number of people at each position P1, P2,.
Further, the latest update information in the registered user database 76 can be used to grasp each user's current position, stay time, biological information, and exercise information.

[5. Identification of the number of people in server equipment]

By the way, as an example of the number management database 75, FIG. 7B describes an example of registering number of people progress information (for example, number of people before x minutes, number of people before 2 minutes,...).
In the case of such a database structure, it is necessary to update the number of people progress information by a process as shown in FIG. 14 every unit time.

For example, after counting the unit time (x minutes) as step F210 in FIG. 14, the server control unit 72 instructs the database management unit 74 to update the number of people progress information in step F211.
As an example of update processing performed by the database management unit 74, the value of the number of people 3x minutes ago is updated to the value of the number of people 2x minutes ago, the value of the number of people 2x minutes ago is updated to the value of the number of people 1x minutes ago, What is necessary is just to update the value of the number of people 1x before to the value of the current number of people.
In this way, the number of people management database 75 can manage the situation of the number of people per unit time x minutes, and the server device 70 can grasp the number of people at each position P1, P2,.

[6. Operation example I for displaying group information]

As described above, the server device 70 manages the current number of people for each of the positions P1, P2,..., So that information on “position where people are gathered” is given to the terminal device 1 or the terminal device 1B. It becomes possible to provide.
Here, the operation in which the server device 70 provides collective information including information on “position where people gather” to the terminal device 1 (or 1B) will be described.

FIG. 15 shows the processing of the system controller 10 of the terminal device 1 and the processing of the server control unit 72 of the server device 70 when performing collective information communication.
FIG. 15 shows a processing example in which the server device 70 transmits the set information in response to a request from the terminal device 1.

When the user of the terminal device 1 wants to see the display of a place where people are gathering on the map image, the user performs a predetermined display request operation using the operation unit 16, for example.
When detecting the display request operation, the system controller 10 advances the processing from step F301 to F302, generates request information, and transmits the request information from the communication unit 18 to the server device 70.

FIG. 16 shows a configuration example of request information. In this case, the system controller 10 generates and transmits request information having a structure as shown in FIG. 16A or 16B.
FIG. 16A shows an example in which request information is composed of a request information header and a user ID.
FIG. 16B shows an example in which the request information is composed of a request information header, a user ID, and position information.
FIGS. 16C and 16D are examples including extraction condition information, which will be described later.
The request information header includes basic matters as current status information to be transmitted, such as an identification code indicating request information, a synchronization signal, a data size, and an information encoding method.
The request information is generated by adding the user ID or the user ID and the position information to the request information header. When adding the position information, the position information detected by the position detection unit 13 at the time when the request information is generated or the latest position information taken into the detection information storage unit 17b at this time may be used.

On the server device 70 side, processing in steps F401 to F404 is performed according to the request information from the terminal device 1.
When the communication unit 73 receives request information from a certain terminal device 1, the server control unit 72 advances the processing from step F 401 to F 402 and instructs the database management unit 74 to perform a search.
In this case, the database management unit 74 is caused to search for “location where people gather”.

The database management unit 74 extracts a place where people are currently gathering from the number management database 75.
Note that various extraction processing methods can be considered, for example, as in the following examples (s1) to (s6).

(S1) In the number management database 75, a position P (x) where the current number is larger than a predetermined reference number M is extracted.
This is a method of simply extracting a location that is equal to or greater than the reference number M (for example, M = 20) by the value of the current number in the number management database 75.

(S2) In the number management database 75, the position P (x) where the current number is larger than the predetermined reference number M is extracted, and the reference number M is changed according to the average set level of each position.
As described above, simply comparing the fixed standard number of people M with the current number of people to determine whether people are gathering or not, in areas where there are usually many people, it is always judged that people are gathering. In a place where there are usually few people, for example, even if a few people are gathered, it is judged that no people are gathering. This is not very appropriate when we mean a place where people are gathering as a place where an accidental event has occurred or an interesting place.
Therefore, the reference number of persons M is changed for each position P1, P2,... According to the average set level registered in the position management database 78.
For example, the standard number of people M = 5 in a place where there are not many people, the standard number of people M = 20 in a downtown area of a local city, the standard number of people M = 50 in a downtown area of a large city, etc. To change.
By doing so, it becomes possible to accurately extract “a place where more people gather than usual”.

  (S3) In the number management database 75, a position P (x) in which the degree of increase in the number of people (number of people change) is equal to or greater than a predetermined reference change is extracted. For example, when the number management database 75 has a form as shown in FIG. 7B, it is possible to determine the change in the number of persons for each position. Therefore, for example, it is conceivable to compare the number of people before a predetermined time with the current number of people and extract a place where the increase number or the increase rate exceeds the reference increase number or the reference increase rate. That is, the “location where people are gathering” can be extracted.

  (S4) Compare the number of people before a predetermined time with the current number of people as in (s3) above, and extract the place where the increase number or the increase rate exceeds the reference increase number or the reference increase rate. However, the increase number of the reference or the increase rate of the reference is changed according to the average set level registered in the position management database 78. That is, the “location where people are gathering” is determined and extracted according to the normal number of people for each position.

  (S5) A place where the current number of persons is larger than the predetermined reference number M and the increase or increase rate of the number of persons exceeds the reference increase number or the reference increase rate is extracted. In other words, a place where the current absolute number of people is large and where people are currently gathering is extracted.

  (S6) In the extraction method of (s5) above, one or both of the reference number M and the reference increase number (or reference increase rate) are changed according to the average set level registered in the location management database 78. . That is, a place where the current absolute number of people is large and a place where people are gathering is extracted, but the normal number of people for each position is further considered.

  As described above, there are various methods for extracting “a place where people are gathering”, but in step F402, the position P (s) as “a place where people are gathering” is determined by any one of these processing methods. Extracted from the positions P1, P2,... Registered in the number management database 75.

Subsequently, in step F403, the server control unit 72 receives extraction result information as a place where people gather from the database management unit 74, and generates aggregate information.
An example of the contents of the set information is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 17A, the set information has, for example, a configuration in which one or a plurality of data units as set position information are added following the set information header.
The set information header includes basic items as current status information to be transmitted, such as an identification code indicating set information, a synchronization signal, a data size, an information encoding method, and the number of data units of added set position information. included.

One set position information is a data unit corresponding to one extracted position.
FIG. 17B is an example in which one set position information is composed only of position information.
FIG. 17C is an example in which one set position information is composed of position information and the current number of people.
FIG. 17D is an example in which one set position information is composed of position information, the current number of people, and a set necessity level.
FIG. 17E is an example in which one set position information includes position information, the current number of people, and extraction conditions.
FIG. 17F is an example in which one set position information is composed of position information, current number of people, extraction conditions, position attributes, and position corresponding service data.
Of course, other various combinations of contents are possible.

In such set position information, the position information is information that is extracted from the number management database 75 and that indicates the position P (s) as a place where people are gathered, for example, by latitude and longitude.
The current number of people is the value of the current number of people registered at the extracted position P (s). Further, the value of the number of people increasing or the value of the number of people increasing may be included.
The set necessity level, the position attribute, and the position corresponding service data are information registered in the position management database 78 described with reference to FIG.
The extraction condition is data of the content of the condition when filtering (narrowing) is performed under some condition when extracting the position P (s) as a place where people gather. This will be described later.

Such set position information is generated for one extracted position P (s). Accordingly, when n positions P (s) as places where people gather are extracted, n pieces of position information are generated, and the data format follows the set information header as shown in FIG. It becomes.
If no position P (s) as a place where people gather is extracted, information on the number of units of the set position information = 0 is placed in the set information header, and is the set position information not added? Alternatively, a data unit as dummy set position information may be added.

When the server control unit 72 generates the set information as described above in step F403, in step F404, the server control unit 72 causes the communication unit 73 to transmit the set information to the terminal device 1 that is the request information transmission source.
After transmitting the request information in step F302, the system controller 10 of the terminal device 1 waits for reception of the set information from the server device 70 in step F303.
When the set information is received, the process proceeds to step F304, and the contents of the set information are stored in the communication data storage unit 17a of the storage unit 17. Then, using the content of the collective information, that is, the content of each collective position information included in the collective information, display data for displaying an announcement of a place where people gather is generated.
Thereafter, in step F305, the system controller 10 displays a map image on the display unit 14 using the map drawing data stored in the map database 71c, and as a notice display of a place where people gather on the map image. The display data is controlled to be superimposed and displayed.

Through the above operation, the user of the terminal device 1 can view the display showing the place where people are gathered on the map image on the display unit 14.
A display example will be described later.

[7. Example of Operation for Collective Information Display II]

Next, an operation example II for displaying the set information will be described with reference to FIG. This is an example in which the user can specify what kind of people are gathering, not just the condition as a place where people gather.

When the user of the terminal device 1 wants to see the display of a place where people are gathering on the map image, the user performs a predetermined display request operation using the operation unit 16, for example.
The system controller 10 proceeds from step F311 to F312 according to the display request operation, and generates extraction condition information here.
For example, the display unit 14 performs a display requesting selection of an extraction condition and prompts the user to input. For example, age conditions such as “children”, “adults”, “20s”, “30 to 35 years old”, “over 50 years old”, sex “male” “female” or “person who likes music” “ The user may arbitrarily select conditions such as hobbies and preferences such as “person who likes shopping”.
Then, information as an extraction condition is generated according to the selection input by the user.

After generating the extraction condition information, the system controller 10 generates request information in step F313.
In this case, the request information is generated as including the extraction condition information in addition to the request information header and the user ID, as shown in FIG. Alternatively, the request information is generated as including the extraction condition information in addition to the request information header, the user ID, and the position information, as shown in FIG.
After generating the request information, the system controller 10 causes the communication unit 18 to transmit the request information to the server device 70 in step F314.

On the server device 70 side, the processes of steps F411 to F414 are performed according to the request information from the terminal device 1.
When the communication unit 73 receives request information from a certain terminal device 1, the server control unit 72 advances the processing from step F411 to F412 and instructs the database management unit 74 to perform a search.
In this case, the database management unit 74 is made to search for “location where people are gathering” and instruct filtering based on the extraction condition information included in the request information.

The database management unit 74 uses the number management database 75 and the registered user database 76 to extract a place where people who currently match the extraction condition information are gathered.
Although various extraction processing methods can be considered, the following processes (A) and (B) are given as examples.
(A) First, one or a plurality of positions P (s) as “a place where people gather” are extracted from the number management database 75 by the method of (s1) to (s6) described above. Thereafter, for each user ID registered for each extracted position P (s), the registered attribute information (age, gender, hobby / preference information) in the registered user database 76 is referred to, and the user does not meet the extraction conditions. Is excluded. By subtracting the number of excluded users from the current number of people in the number management database 75, it is possible to know how many people meet the extraction condition at the position P (s). By comparing this number of persons with a predetermined reference number of persons, it can be determined whether or not it is “a place where a lot of people with a specific extraction condition are gathering”.
(B) The registered attribute information is extracted from the registered user database 76 with reference to the registered attribute information. Then, the latest update information for the user ID that matches the condition is referred to, and the current position is totaled. By comparing the number of persons at each position as the total result with a predetermined reference number of persons, it can be determined whether or not each position is “a place where a lot of people with a specific extraction condition are gathered”.

For example, in this way, a position as a place where many people who match the extraction condition information are gathered is extracted.
Subsequently, in step F413, the server control unit 72 receives extraction result information as a place where people matching the extraction condition information are gathered from the database management unit 74, and generates set information.
The contents of the set information are as shown in FIG. Particularly in this case, it is also preferable to add the extraction condition information to the set position information as shown in FIGS.

When the server control unit 72 generates the collective information as described above in step F413, the server control unit 72 causes the communication unit 73 to transmit the collective information to the request information transmission source terminal device 1 in step F414.
After transmitting the request information in step F314, the system controller 10 of the terminal device 1 waits for reception of the set information from the server device 70 in step F315.
When the set information is received, the process proceeds to step F316, and the contents of the set information are stored in the communication data storage unit 17a of the storage unit 17. Then, using the content of the collective information, that is, the content of each collective position information included in the collective information, display data for displaying an announcement of a place where people gather is generated.
Thereafter, in step F317, the system controller 10 displays a map image on the display unit 14 using the map drawing data stored in the map database 71c, and as a notice display of a place where people gather on the map image. The display data is controlled to be superimposed and displayed. A display example will be described later.

With the above operation, the user of the terminal device 1 can know, on the display unit 14, the location where people who meet the specific extraction condition are gathered on the map image.
Note that various examples of filtering on the server device 70 side performed in accordance with the extraction condition information are conceivable, and will be collectively described later.

[8. Example of Operation for Collective Information Display III]

In the operation examples I and II, the server device 70 transmits the set information to the terminal device 1 in response to the request information from the terminal device 1 side. An example of transmitting information is also conceivable. This will be described as an operation example III.

FIG. 19 shows processing of the system controller 10 of the terminal device 1 and processing of the server control unit 72 of the server device 70 as operation example III.
The server control unit 72 monitors, for example, regular check timing as step F421.
When the check timing comes, the server control unit 72 advances the process to step F422, and instructs the database management unit 74 to check the database.

The database management unit 74 examines the number management database 75 according to the instruction and determines whether or not there is a position where the degree of gathering of people is changed.
Each time the database management unit 74 is instructed to check the database, the database management unit 74 extracts “a place where people are gathering” by the processing method as described above (s1) to (s6), and according to the extraction result. What is necessary is just to determine the presence or absence of a situation change.
For example, the database management unit 74 stores the position P (s) extracted as “a place where people gather” in the extraction process at the previous check timing. Then, at the current check timing, positions where more than the reference number of people are gathered are extracted, and one or more positions P (s) as the extraction result are one or more positions P as the previous extraction result. It is determined whether or not it matches (s).
If a location no longer falls under “Place where people are gathering”, or if a location that was not previously extracted but was extracted as “Place where people gather” is present, the situation has changed. It is determined that

When the server control unit 72 receives a result of no change in status from the database management unit 74, the process returns from step F423 to F421, and waits for the next check timing.
On the other hand, when receiving the result of the situation change from the database management unit 74, the server control unit 72 advances the processing from step F423 to F424, and generates set information. That is, it receives position information as a result of the current extraction performed by the database management unit 74, generates set position information as shown in FIGS. 17B to 17F corresponding to each extracted position, The set information of FIG. 17A including the data unit as the set position information is generated.
In step F425, the server control unit 72 causes the communication unit 73 to transmit the set information to the terminal device 1. In this case, the transmission may be made not to a specific terminal device 1 but to a large number of terminal devices 1.

The system controller 10 of the terminal device 1 waits for reception of the set information from the server device 70 in step F321.
When the set information is received, the process proceeds to step F322, and the contents of the set information are stored in the communication data storage unit 17a of the storage unit 17. Then, using the content of the collective information, that is, the content of each collective position information included in the collective information, display data for displaying an announcement of a place where people gather is generated.
Thereafter, in step F323, the system controller 10 displays a map image on the display unit 14 using the map drawing data stored in the map database 71c, and as a notice display of a place where people gather on the map image. The display data is controlled to be superimposed and displayed. A display example will be described later.

With the above operation, the user of the terminal device 1 gathers the current person on the map image on the display unit 14 in response to the fact that the collective information is transmitted from the server device 70 side without any particular operation. You can know where you are.

[9. Example of filtering by extraction conditions]

By the way, in the above operation example II, the user of the terminal device 1 specifies extraction conditions such as age, sex, hobbies and preferences, and the server device 70 performs filtering based on the extraction conditions, and people who meet the extraction conditions are gathered. An example of extracting a place was described.
On the other hand, like the processing on the terminal device 1 side described as the processing on the left side of FIG. 15, filtering can be performed on the server device 70 side even if the user of the terminal device 1 does not specify the extraction condition. For example, an operation example in which the processing of the terminal device 1 on the left side in FIG. 15 and the processing on the server device 70 side on the right side in FIG. Further, filtering may be considered in the processing on the server device 70 side in FIG.
Here, various specific examples of filter processing examples applicable to these system operations will be given.

An example in which the extraction of the position P (s) as a place where people on the server device 70 side gather is filtered by an area range is conceivable.
For example, the user of the terminal device 1 specifies a specific area range as the extraction condition information. For example, the area range is designated by a place name, a district name, a range designation on a map image, or the like. The terminal device 1 adds the information of the designated area range as extraction condition information, and transmits request information as shown in FIGS. On the server device 70 side, a location where people gather is searched for a position within a range corresponding to the extraction condition, and collective information is generated.

Further, even if the user of the terminal device 1 does not specify the extraction condition, a specific area range can be set as a search target based on the current position of the terminal device 1.
By making the terminal device 1 include the position information in the request information as shown in FIGS. 16B and 16D, on the server device 70 side, the current position of the user of the terminal device 1 can be specified. Therefore, on the server device 70 side, a regional range is set, for example, as a range of radius xkm, or in the same city, in the same prefecture, etc., centering on the location information (user's current location) included in the request information. Then, a location where people are gathering is searched for a position within the area range, and collective information is generated.

  Even if the position information is not included in the request information, the terminal device 1 (except for the terminal device 1B in this case) transmits the current status information in the process of FIG. 10, and sequentially notifies the current position to the server device 70 side. Yes. Therefore, on the server device 70 side, the registered user database 76 can be searched from the user ID to confirm the current user position. In that case, with the confirmed user position as a reference, a region range is set as a range of diameter xkm, the same city, the same prefecture, etc., and people gather for the position within the region range It is also possible to generate a set information by searching for a place.

One of the purposes of this example is to notify the user of the terminal device 1 where a person is gathering as a place where an interesting event has occurred, but it is not so meaningful in a distant place where the user cannot go. Absent. Considering this, filtering based on the area range based on the current position of the user is suitable in that it can provide information effective for the user.
On the other hand, when the user designates an area range as an extraction condition, the user can know how people gather in a distant area regardless of the position where the user is. For example, if the user wants to know the gathering of people for a certain area, not for the purpose of going to the place, for example, for research, research, etc., the gathering of people at any place regardless of their position It is preferable that the condition can be seen.
In addition, if the filtering by the area range is performed, the extraction process of the position as a place where people gather can be improved.

Next, filtering by the attribute of a person can be considered.
As described above, the user of the terminal device 1 selects age, sex, hobbies / preferences as the extraction condition information, and the terminal device 1 adds the specified extraction condition information as shown in FIG. ) Request information such as On the server device 70 side, a place where persons corresponding to the extraction condition are gathered is searched, and set information is generated.
Thereby, the user of the terminal device 1 knows information on a place where people are gathering under arbitrary conditions such as a place where women gather, a place where children gather, a place where people with music hobbies gather. be able to.

In the example of FIG. 18 described above, the user of the terminal device 1 specifies the extraction condition. However, the server device 70 may automatically perform filtering based on person attributes. The request information from the terminal device 1 includes a user ID, and the registered attribute information of the user of the terminal device 1 is managed by the registered user database 76 on the server device 70 side. That is, it is possible to determine the age, sex, hobby / preference of the user of the terminal device 1. Then, on the server device 70 side, it is possible to search for a place where many people who match the user are gathered using the age, sex, hobbies and preferences of the user of the terminal device 1 as extraction conditions.
That is, the user of the terminal device 1 can know information on a place where people of the same gender, age group, hobbies / preferences are gathered.

Also, filtering by staying time can be considered.
For example, the user of the terminal device 1 inputs a condition such as a stay time of 10 minutes or more as the extraction condition information. The terminal device 1 transmits request information as shown in FIGS. 16C and 16D to which the specified extraction condition information is added. On the server device 70 side, since the stay time for each user ID is managed in the registered user database 76, a user ID such as a stay time of 10 minutes or more can be extracted. Then, a place where people corresponding to the extraction condition are gathered is searched, and set information is generated.
Thereby, the user of the terminal device 1 can know information such as a place where people with a long staying time gather.

  Further, even if the user of the terminal device 1 does not specify, filtering by stay time may be performed on the server device 70 side. For example, there are many people at the intersection of the central city of a large city or the road around the event venue, but most of them are moving people. For this reason, it is also effective to perform filtering so that a person whose stay time is short is not a person at the place and is not included in the current number of persons at that position.

Next, filtering according to the situation of a person can be considered.
The situation of a person is biometric information, a psychological situation estimated from the biometric information, or an operation state indicated by exercise information.
For example, according to the extraction condition of “pounding person”, the server device 70 can refer to the biometric information in the registered user database 76 and perform filtering for a person whose heart rate is a predetermined value or more. . Then, the user of the terminal device 1 can know a place where people who are excited as a result gather.
Similarly, by using extraction conditions such as “excited person” and “person who feels fun” as psychological states, it is possible to know a place where people corresponding to them are gathered.
In particular, these conditions are effective when the user of the terminal device 1 wants to know a place where something interesting is happening.
In addition, by using “running people” or the like as exercise information as an extraction condition, it is possible to know where the corresponding people gather.

Such biological information and exercise information may also be designated by the user or automatically set on the server side.
For example, the user of the terminal device 1 inputs a condition such as “a person who is excited” as the extraction condition information. The terminal device 1 transmits request information as shown in FIGS. 16C and 16D to which the specified extraction condition information is added. On the server device 70 side, since the psychological state of each user ID is managed in the registered user database 76, a user ID corresponding to a person who is excited can be extracted. Then, a place where people corresponding to the extraction condition are gathered is searched, and set information is generated. Thereby, the user of the terminal device 1 can know a place where people corresponding to an arbitrary biological situation or the like gather, for example, a person who is excited.
Further, the request information from the terminal device 1 includes the user ID, and the server device 70 manages the latest update information of the user of the terminal device 1 by the registered user database 76. For this reason, the present biological information and exercise information of the user of the terminal device 1 can be determined. Therefore, on the server device 70 side, it is possible to search for a place where a lot of relevant people are gathered using the biological condition, psychological condition, and exercise condition similar to the user of the terminal device 1 as extraction conditions.
That is, the user of the terminal device 1 can know information on a place where people who are in the same situation and mood as the user gather.

Further, filtering based on the distribution status of people is also conceivable.
For example, on the server device 70 side, it is possible to grasp the distribution of persons at each position P1, P2,... By the number management database 75 and the registered user database 76.
For example, it can be determined whether people of a specific age group are concentrated as people who are gathered, or whether people of a very diverse age group are gathered. Of course, the gender ratio can also be confirmed.
Thus, for example, it is possible to extract a place where people of various ages gather, a place where the ratio of men and women is about the same, and the like, where a specific age group is not dominant.

In the above, examples of filtering have been enumerated, but of course, filtering in which these are combined is also possible, and various examples of filtering not mentioned here are also conceivable.

[10. Display example]

According to the operation examples I, II, and III for displaying the set information described above, the terminal device 1 performs display based on the set information transmitted from the server device 70 side.
Here, a display example will be described.

20, 21, 22, and 23 show examples of images displayed on the display panel 14a in the display unit 14 of the terminal device 1 or the terminal device 1B, respectively.
In the example of FIG. 20, a position corresponding to “a place where people are gathering” is presented by a set mark 31 on the map image. Further, as the self-position display 30, the current position of the user of the terminal device 1 is presented by a character image or the like.

When the terminal device 1 receives the set information from the server device 70, the terminal device 1 has acquired the position information as a place where people are gathered from the set position information corresponding to one or more positions included in the set information. become. Therefore, the system controller 10 can display a map using the map drawing data read from the map database 17c, and can display a set mark 31 at a point on the map indicated by the position information as shown in FIG.
By performing the display in this way, the user of the terminal device 1 can know a place where people are gathering.
Further, by performing the self-position display 30 of the terminal device 1, the user can easily grasp the positional relationship between his / her position and a place where people gather.

There are various ways of displaying the set mark 31.
The collective mark 31 may be expressed by a mark having a predetermined shape, a character image, or the like, or may be a display mode such as changing the color as a position on the map or blinking.
Further, when the set position information included in the set information includes the current number of persons as shown in FIGS. 17C to 17F, the system controller 10 sets the current number of persons (or the increase number or the increase rate) to the current number. Accordingly, it is conceivable to change the size of the collective mark 31, change the color, or change the blinking speed. Thereby, the user can know how many people are gathering.

The display example of FIG. 21 is an example in which when the above-described filtering is performed on the server device 70 side, display according to the extraction condition is performed.
For example, when the set position information included in the set information includes an extraction condition as shown in FIGS. 17E and 17F, the system controller 10 presents the position indicated by the set position information. A character image to be displayed can be selected according to the extraction condition.

For example, if the extraction condition is “female”, a character image representing a woman is displayed as in the collective mark 32.
If the extraction condition is “running person”, a character image representing the running person is displayed as in the set mark 33.
If the extraction condition is “pounding person”, a character image representing a pounding person is displayed as a collective mark 33.
By performing such character image display, the user of the terminal device 1 can also know what people are gathering.

  Note that the system controller 10 sets the extraction condition from the terminal device 1 side as shown in FIG. 18, for example, even if the collection position information in the received collection information does not include the extraction condition as shown in FIGS. When the designated request information is transmitted, the system controller 10 can select the character image corresponding to the extraction condition during the display processing in steps F316 and F317 by storing the extraction condition. A display like 21 is possible.

FIG. 22 shows a display example in which more detailed information is provided to the user.
For example, when the display as shown in FIG. 21 is performed, it is assumed that the user performs an operation of designating (for example, clicking) the set mark 34.
In such a case, the system controller 10 can cause the user to execute the additional information display 35 related to the set mark 34.
Of course, when the additional information can be acquired regardless of the user operation, the system controller 10 may automatically execute the additional information display 35 as shown in FIG.

For example, when the set position information includes position attributes and position-corresponding service data as shown in FIG. 17 (f), the system controller 10 relates to the position attribute and position corresponding to the position indicated by the set position information. Additional information as service data is acquired. Therefore, according to the user operation, display based on the position attribute and the position corresponding service data can be executed and controlled as shown in FIG.
The location attribute is, for example, a place name, a place name, a facility name, a road name, a facility type, etc., and the position corresponding service data includes a URL (Uniform Resource Locator) related to the point, a store advertisement, a business guide, an image, Discount information, photographic images and comments as post data from general users. The system controller 10 can execute as the additional information display 35 according to these pieces of information.
For example, it is assumed that a person at the set mark 34 encounters an artist “AAA” on the street and posts the captured image and a comment to the server device 70 side.
At this time, in the collective information sent to the terminal device 1 at the location of the self-position display 30 in the figure, this captured image and comment data “AAA is doing guerrilla live!” Are included in the position-corresponding service data. To receive. At this time, the system controller 10 can cause the additional information display 35 as shown in FIG. 22 to be executed automatically or in response to a user operation.

  Note that such additional information (position attribute and position-corresponding service data) is not transmitted / received by being included in the collective position information. For example, when the user performs an operation to designate the collective mark 34, the system controller 10 may perform communication access control to the server device 70 and request the server device 70 to transmit additional information.

  Further, the additional information display 35 can be a display that does not necessarily depend on the location attribute or location-corresponding service data provided from the server device 70. For example, in the example of FIG. 22, a sentence “106 people are excited!” Is displayed. When the collective position information includes the current number of people and extraction conditions as shown in FIGS. 17D and 17E, the system controller 10 can create text data as an explanation of the position information. That is, if the current number of persons is 106 and the extraction condition is “a person who is excited”, the system controller 10 can generate the text data and display it as the additional information display 35.

FIG. 23 is a display example according to the set necessity level. For example, it is assumed that the set marks 34A and 34B are displayed based on the set information transmitted from the server device 70 as a result of filtering under the extraction condition of “pounding person”. Here, it is assumed that the set position information in the set information includes information on the set necessity level as shown in FIG.
As described above, from the viewpoint of whether or not an accident occurs in a certain place, even if people gather in a place where the level of necessity of gathering is high, it is not very valuable information for the user. On the other hand, if people gather in a place where the level of necessity of gathering is low, that information becomes valuable information.
For example, it is assumed that the set mark 34B in FIG. 23 is a concert hall or the like, while the set mark 34A is simply on the road.
In this case, in the position management database 78 in the server device 70, the set necessity level related to the position of the set mark 34B is set high, and the set necessity level related to the position of the set mark 34A is set low. Then, the set necessity level is added to the set position information and transmitted to the terminal device 1.
The system controller 10 of the terminal device 1 can change the display size in accordance with the aggregation necessity level. In other words, since a place where the level of necessity of collection is lower is precious information that people gather, it is displayed by a large set mark 34A as shown in the figure, and a place where the level of necessity of collection is high is displayed by a small set mark 34B. .

As a result, the user can determine the degree of gathering of people in the sense of the accidental event.
Although the size of the collective mark 34 is changed here, the degree of randomness may be expressed by the color of the collective mark 34, the blinking speed, or the like.

  Here, the display size or the like is changed according to the level of necessity of collection included in the set information received by the system controller 10. However, according to the facility type that the system controller 10 can grasp from the map database 17c, The display level may be selected by determining the necessity level. For example, if the map database 17c can grasp that the position where the notification display is performed according to the set information is a concert hall or a sports stadium, the place is determined to have a high level of necessity for the set.

As described above, display examples have been shown, but various display modes for presenting places where people are gathering can be considered.
Also, when displaying a map, the scale of the map is usually changed, but it is also appropriate to change the upper limit of the number of notification displays of places where people gather according to the scale.

[11. Effects and modifications of the embodiment]

According to the above embodiment, the user of the terminal device 1 (1B) normally knows events and events that cannot be known unless he / she is at the site as information on the location where people gather. be able to. This makes it possible to provide very useful information to the user.
Also, it is not just a gathering of people, but by displaying what people are gathering and how many people are gathering, the user is interested in what is happening in that place. It is also suitable for determining whether or not there is a certain event, and appropriate information can be provided to the user.

In the case of the operation example I for the collective information display of FIG. 15 described above, the user of the terminal device 1 can obtain the information when he / she wants to know the information of the place where people gather.
Further, in the case of the operation example II for displaying the collective information in FIG. 18, the user of the terminal device 1 obtains the information when he / she wants to know information on a place where people who meet the specific extraction condition are gathered. be able to.
Further, in the case of the operation example III for displaying the collective information in FIG. 19, the information of the place where the people gather is notified to the user of the terminal device 1 according to the change of the situation as the place where the people gather. Thus, the user can easily know where the accidental event is occurring.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications can be considered as device configuration examples and processing examples.
The above-described configurations as the terminal devices 1, 1 </ b> A, 1 </ b> B and the server device 70 are merely examples, and it is naturally possible to add or delete various components according to an operation example or function actually implemented.
For example, although the terminal devices 1 and 1B are configured to include the display unit 14, the display unit may not be provided and display may be performed using a separate display device.

In the above embodiment, on the server device 70 side, the individual management of the terminal device 1 is performed by the user ID. However, a system operation that does not use information identifying the user or the terminal device such as the user ID is also conceivable.
In other words, the current status information transmitted from the terminal devices 1 and 1A is not included in the user ID, and the server device 70 only manages the number of people at each position P1, P2,. To. And it is an example which produces | generates aggregate information based on it and transmits to unspecified terminal device 1, 1B.

It is explanatory drawing of the system configuration example of an embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram of the terminal device of an embodiment. It is a block diagram of the terminal device of an embodiment. It is a block diagram of the terminal device of an embodiment. It is a block diagram of the terminal device of an embodiment. It is a block diagram of the server apparatus of an embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the number management database of embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the registration user database of embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the position management database of embodiment. It is a flowchart of the transmission / reception process of the present condition information of an embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the structure of the present condition information of embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the update process of the people management database of embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the update process of the registration user database of embodiment. It is a flowchart of the management process of the number of people change of embodiment. It is a flowchart of operation example I for collective information display of an embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the structure of the request information of embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the structure of the set information of embodiment. It is a flowchart of the operation example II for the group information display of embodiment. It is a flowchart of operation example III for collective information display of an embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the example of a display of the set mark of embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the example of a display of the set mark according to the extraction conditions of embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the example of a display of the set mark which added the additional information of embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the example of a display of the set mark according to the set necessity level of embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

  1, 1A, 1B terminal device, 2 detection device unit, 3 display device unit, 10 system controller, 11 biological sensor unit, 12 motion sensor unit, 13 position detection unit, 14 display unit, 15 date and time counting unit, 17 storage unit 18, 73 Communication unit, 70 Server device, 72 Server control unit, 74 Database management unit, 75 Number management database, 76 Registered user database, 78 Location management database

Claims (30)

As an information providing system having a terminal device and an information providing device capable of communicating with the terminal device,
The information providing apparatus is
Communication means for communicating with the terminal device;
Number of people information management means for managing current number of people information at each position;
Based on the number of people information managed by the number of people information management means, a position for performing notification display is determined, a set information generation means for generating set information including information of the position for performing notification display,
Transmission control means for transmitting the set information generated by the set information generating means to the terminal device by the communication means;
With
The terminal device is
A communication means for communicating with the information providing apparatus;
Control means for causing the display of the map image to be executed in the integral or separate display unit, and for causing the display based on the set information transmitted from the information providing apparatus and received by the communication means to be executed on the map image;
An information providing system characterized by comprising: A communication means for communicating with an external terminal device;
Number of people information management means for managing current number of people information at each position;
Based on the number of people information managed by the number of people information management means, a position for performing notification display is determined, a set information generation means for generating set information including information of the position for performing the notification display,
Transmission control means for transmitting the set information generated by the set information generating means to the terminal device by the communication means;
An information providing apparatus comprising:   The set information generation means determines whether or not the current number of people at each position is equal to or greater than a predetermined number of people based on the number of people information managed by the number of people information management means, and determines a position for performing the notification display. The information providing apparatus according to claim 2.   The collective information generation means determines whether or not the change amount of the number of people at each position is greater than or equal to a predetermined reference change amount based on the number of people information managed by the number of people information management means, and displays the notice. The information providing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a position is determined. The communication means receives current status information including at least current position information of the terminal device transmitted from an external terminal device, and
3. The information providing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the number information management means manages the current number information at each position using the received current status information. The current status information includes identification information on the terminal device side,
6. The information providing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the number-of-persons information management unit manages information of persons at each position based on the identification information. The current status information further includes biological information or exercise information of a person possessing the terminal device,
The information providing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the number information management unit manages the biological information or the exercise information together with the identification information as information on a person at each position.   The information providing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the number information management unit manages attribute registration information of a person who uses the terminal device in association with the identification information.   7. The information providing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the number information management means manages the staying time at the current position in correspondence with the identification information as information on a person at each position.   When the set information generation means determines whether or not the current number of people at each position is equal to or greater than a predetermined number, the position of the predetermined number of persons is determined as a different value for each position, and a position for displaying the notification is displayed. The information providing device according to claim 3, wherein the information providing device is determined.   The collective information generating means is characterized in that as each position within a specific area range, it is determined whether or not the current number of persons at each position is equal to or greater than a predetermined number, and a position for performing notification display is determined. The information providing apparatus according to claim 3.   The collective information generation means determines the current number of persons corresponding to a predetermined extraction condition as the current number of persons at each position, determines whether or not the determined current number is equal to or greater than the predetermined number, and notifies The information providing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein a display position is determined.   13. The information providing apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the extraction condition is a condition including at least one of person attribute registration information, biological information, exercise information, and stay time.   4. The collective information generating means determines a position where a notification display is performed according to a distribution state of attribute information of existing persons, wherein the current number of persons is a predetermined number or more. The information providing device according to 1.   When determining whether or not the amount of change in the number of persons at each position is greater than or equal to the reference change amount, the collective information generation means determines the reference change amount as a different value for each position, and displays a notification. The information providing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein a position for performing the determination is determined.   The collective information generation means determines, as each position within a specific area range, whether or not the number of people change at each position is greater than or equal to a reference change amount, and determines a position for performing notification display. The information providing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the apparatus is an information providing apparatus.   The collective information generating means determines the current number of persons who meet a predetermined extraction condition at each position, and determines whether the determined change in the number of current persons is equal to or greater than a reference change amount. 5. The information providing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein a position for performing notification display is determined.   18. The information providing apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the extraction condition is a condition including at least one of person attribute registration information, biological information, exercise information, and staying time.   The collective information generation means determines a position where the notification display is performed according to a distribution state of attribute information of a person who is present at a position where the number of people change is equal to or greater than a reference change. Item 4. The information providing apparatus according to Item 3.   3. The information provision according to claim 2, wherein the set information generation unit generates set information including information on a position determined to be notified and information on the current number of persons or the amount of change in the number of persons at the position. apparatus.   3. The information provision according to claim 2, wherein the set information generation unit generates set information including information on a position determined to be notified and information on an extraction condition at the time of determining the position. apparatus.   3. The information providing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the set information generation unit generates set information including information on a position determined to perform notification display and additional information on the determined position.   The transmission control means causes the communication means to transmit the set information generated by the set information generation means to the terminal apparatus in response to receiving request information from an external terminal apparatus. The information providing apparatus according to claim 2.   The transmission control unit causes the communication unit to transmit the set information generated by the set information generation unit to the terminal device at a transmission timing according to a change in the number of people situation. The information providing apparatus according to the description. Managing the current number of people information at each location;
Determining a position for performing the notification display based on the managed number information, and generating set information including information on the position for performing the notification display;
Transmitting the generated set information to an external terminal device;
An information providing method characterized by comprising: Communication means for communicating with an external information providing device;
The display based on the collective information including the position information for performing the notification display, which is transmitted from the information providing apparatus and received by the communication means, is displayed on the map, while displaying the map image on the integral or separate display unit. Control means to be executed on the image;
A terminal device comprising: The set information includes position information for displaying notifications and information on the current number of persons or the amount of change in the number of persons at the position.
The control means, as a display based on the collective information, causes a display in a different manner depending on the current number of persons or the amount of change in the number of persons at a position on a map image corresponding to the position information. Item 27. The terminal device according to Item 26. The set information includes position information for displaying notifications and information on extraction conditions when determining the position.
27. The display according to claim 26, wherein the control means causes the display based on the collective information to execute a display in a different mode according to the extraction condition at a position on the map image corresponding to the position information. Terminal equipment. The set information includes position information for displaying notifications and additional information about the position.
27. The terminal device according to claim 26, wherein the control means causes the display based on the additional information to be executed at a position on a map image corresponding to the position information as a display based on the set information. As a display method in a terminal device that can communicate with an external information providing device,
Receiving from the information providing apparatus collective information including position information for performing notification display;
In the integrated or separate display unit, executing the display of the map image and executing the display based on the received set information on the map image;
A display method characterized by comprising:

Images